WWW Wednesday 9th March 2016

Why not join in? Just answer the following three questions in a post and then put a link to that post in the Comments over at Taking on a World of Words.

The questions are:

What are you currently reading?

What did you recently finish reading?

What do you think you’ll read next?

As always, clicking on the cover image will take you to the book’s Goodreads page.

1. What I’m reading at the moment

You and Me, Alwaysby Jill Mansell

I won a book! Thank you to Sonya over at A Lover of Books for my copy of You and Me, Always which I won through a competition on her blog. I’ve read 7 other books by Jill Mansell and enjoyed them all. I view her as the high watermark in contemporary romance and I’m looking forward to reading this.

The blurb:On the morning of Lily’s twenty-fifth birthday, it’s time to open the very last letter written to her by her beloved mother, who died when she was eight.

Learning more about the first and only real love of her mum’s life is a revelation. On the same day, Lily also meets Eddie Tessler, a man fleeing fame who just might have the ability to change her world in unimaginable ways. But her childhood friend Dan has his own reasons for not wanting Lily to get too carried away by Eddie’s attentions.

Before long, secrets begin to emerge and Lily’s friends and family become involved. In the beautiful Cotswold village of Stanton Langley, nothing will ever be the same again…

2. The last books I read (brace yourselves, there are DOUBLE the normal amount this week!)

The Trouble with Goats and Sheepby Joanna Cannon

The lovely Lindsay @bookboodle and I went to an event at Waterstones in Birmingham last week to hear Joanna Cannon talk about her book (thank you Lindsay for inviting me). She was lovely and spoke very eloquently about her work. This made me extra-glad I enjoyed her book. Here’s my full review.

The blurb:England, 1976.

Mrs Creasy is missing and The Avenue is alive with whispers. As the summer shimmers endlessly on, ten-year-olds Grace and Tilly decide to take matters into their own hands.

And as the cul-de-sac starts giving up its secrets, the amateur detectives will find much more than they imagined…

AND

The Girl from Everywhere by Heidi Heilig

If you don’t mind some dodgy time-travelling mechanics, this is a fun, well-written adventure. Here’s my review.

The blurb:Nix has spent her entire life aboard her father’s ship, sailing across the centuries, across the world, across myth and imagination.

As long as her father has a map for it, he can sail to any time, any place, real or imagined: nineteenth-century China, the land from One Thousand and One Nights, a mythic version of Africa. Along the way they have found crewmates and friends, and even a disarming thief who could come to mean much more to Nix.

But the end to it all looms closer every day.

Her father is obsessed with obtaining the one map, 1868 Honolulu, that could take him back to his lost love, Nix’s mother. Even though getting it—and going there—could erase Nix’s very existence.

For the first time, Nix is entering unknown waters.

AND!

I Hunt Killers (Jasper Dent #1) by Barry Lyga

If you can stomach books about serial killers, read this one. It’s brilliant. My first 5-star read of 2016! Here’s my full review.

The blurb:What if the world’s worst serial killer…was your dad?

Jasper “Jazz” Dent is a likable teenager. A charmer, one might say.

But he’s also the son of the world’s most infamous serial killer, and for Dear Old Dad, Take Your Son to Work Day was year-round. Jazz has witnessed crime scenes the way cops wish they could—from the criminal’s point of view.

And now bodies are piling up in Lobo’s Nod.

In an effort to clear his name, Jazz joins the police in a hunt for a new serial killer. But Jazz has a secret—could he be more like his father than anyone knows?

AND!! (I know! I’ve surprised myself this week!)

Whispers Underground(Peter Grant #3) by Ben Aaronovitch

I read this quickly and didn’t review it here on the blog because I’ve said everything there is to say in my reviews of Rivers of London (book 1) and Moon Over Soho (book 2). If you’ve read and enjoyed those books, you’ll enjoy this one. I did do a quick review over on Goodreads if you want to check that out.

The blurb:A WHOLE NEW REASON TO MIND THE GAP

It begins with a dead body at the far end of Baker Street tube station, all that remains of American exchange student James Gallagher—and the victim’s wealthy, politically powerful family is understandably eager to get to the bottom of the gruesome murder. The trouble is, the bottom—if it exists at all—is deeper and more unnatural than anyone suspects…except, that is, for London constable and sorcerer’s apprentice Peter Grant. With Inspector Nightingale, the last registered wizard in England, tied up in the hunt for the rogue magician known as “the Faceless Man,” it’s up to Peter to plumb the haunted depths of the oldest, largest, and—as of now—deadliest subway system in the world.

At least he won’t be alone. No, the FBI has sent over a crack agent to help. She’s young, ambitious, beautiful…and a born-again Christian apt to view any magic as the work of the devil. Oh yeah—that’s going to go well.

3. What I’ll read next

What Milo Saw by Virginia MacGregor

I’m so behind getting to this one! I’ve been meaning to read it for ages and then last week it was sitting on a display stand at the front of the library calling to me…

The blurb: Nine-year-old Milo Moon has retinitis pigmentosa: his eyes are slowly failing and he will eventually go blind. But for now he sees the world through a pin hole and notices things other people don’t. When Milo’s beloved gran succumbs to dementia and moves into a nursing home, Milo soon realises there’s something wrong at the home. So with just Tripi, the nursing home’s cook, and Hamlet, his pet pig, to help, Milo sets out on a mission to expose the nursing home and the sinister Nurse Thornhill.

AND

Time Travelling with a Hamster by Ross Welford

I blame this one entirely on the librarians at my local library. This was sitting on the big display by the entrance and the cover lured me towards it. Then the blurb was funny. And after The Girl from Everywhere, I’m in the mood for more timey-wimey business.

The blurb:“My dad died twice. Once when he was thirty nine and again four years later when he was twelve.

The first time had nothing to do with me. The second time definitely did, but I would never even have been there if it hadn’t been for his ‘time machine’…”

When Al Chaudhury discovers his late dad’s time machine, he finds that going back to the 1980s requires daring and imagination. It also requires lies, theft, burglary, and setting his school on fire. All without losing his pet hamster, Alan Shearer…

Have you read/are reading any of these? What are you reading? Let me know! 🙂

Last week I made cherry scones, perfect for elevenses or afternoon tea.

Wow. I only manage to read 1 book a week, if I’m lucky.
I wanted to ask your advice on how you get the little pictures of the books you’ve read. I usually take my own picture if its a paperback (because I like that personal touch), but it doesn’t look as good from my old black and white kindle screen!

This week was rather unusual. I was able to read Whispers Underground very quickly because it’s the 3rd in the series and I’m very familiar with the characters and setting. And then I Hunt Killers was so addictive I think I inhaled it!
I usually go to the book’s page on Goodreads and then right click on the cover image and choose the option to save it. This usually gives you a fairly good size image.

Where have you found all this spare time to read *4* books?
I Hunt Killers sounds like a fab read and if you’ve awarded 5 stars then it’s highly recomended. Now, I like murder mysteries but don’t want nightmares from them, how graphic is it?
Thanks for visiting my WWW – http://bookboodle.co.uk/2016/03/09/www-wednesday-march-9th 🙂

The good thing about I Hunt Killers being YA is that it’s gripping, tense and creepy, but it’s not frightening or nightmare-inducing. And I say that as someone who can’t watch horror films because they make me scared of my own shadow 🙂

I have a feeling I was in the wrong frame of mind when I read You and Me, Always so will be interested to see how you find it. I’ve added I Hunt Killers to my TBR based on your review but have so many books lined up may be a while till I get to it 🙂

I can’t believe I missed your review of The Trouble with Goats and Sheep this week – I’m going to go read and share the post as soon as I’ve posted this comment. Well done on winning the Jill Mansell book, I hope you enjoy reading it.

I’m in awe of your reading skills. How do you manage to read so many books in one week? Teach me!
Time Travelling With a Hamster sounds hilarious, I’ll have to look into that. I think The Girl From Everywhere is already on my TBR list on Goodreads, but I’ll double check.

It was a bit of a fluke. Because Whispers Underground is the third in the series I could fly though it. And then I Hunt Killers turned out to be a “read it in a few hours” type book.
Doesn’t happen often! 🙂
Happy reading!

You’ve been busy!! Lucky you with all the good books! I Hunt Killers and The Girl from Everywhere is now on my TBR list! Suspending belief is how I watch Dr. Who – I just let all the physics and science stuff go right over my head and enjoy the ride so The Girl sounds right up my alley! Here’s my list: http://hollykerr.ca/www-wednesday-im-reading-13/

I know! I’ve surprised myself 🙂
I think anyone who appreciates Dr Who without worrying too much about the details will enjoy The Girl From Everywhere. And I Hunt Killers is awesome.
I’ll visit your post now!

Yay for I Hunt Killers! My heart always skips a beat whenever I see someone enjoying this series as much as I did. 😀 The Girl From Everywhere sounds really good as well… I hope you’ll enjoy your books this week!

I wish I could always keep up this speed – I’d be able to clear a lot more of my TBR!
You and Me, Always is just as good as Jill Mansell’s other books 🙂 And just the thing to read after a chilling serial killer thriller!

The Peter Grant series are fun. Particularly if you like mysteries/police procedurals mixed with a bit of supernatural goings on. They’re also surprisingly funny and great if you like London!
I’ll check out your post now…

I always fancy a cherry scone! haha! 🙂 The Trouble with Goats and Sheep is a very good book. And even more impressive now I know the author wrote a good chunk of it in her lunch hours, sitting in the hospital car park!

Peter Grant is always good for a fun read, although I agree with your review that it’s more of the same at this point. I need to get back to that series and see if there’s anything new/different in the later books, but now that I own them, they’re much lower down in priority than the books I get from my library.

I just got the 4th one from the library! That’s how it goes with me too. I’ve got books at home I bought months ago. I need to stop going to the library until I’ve cleared the backlog! (won’t happen – haha!)

That is an impressive reading week! Congrats on this and also on winning a book!
I have never heard of Jill Mansell, but I’m in the mood for contemporary romance so I’ll check her books. I got a little tired of Sophie Kinsella. I’ve added Rivers of London to my TBR after reading your review, I feel like adding a little supernatural to my life. It’s time to stop being a coward! I’ll pass on What Milo Saw because it sounds a little depressing, but the title for Ross Welford’s book cracked me up.

I find Sophie Kinsella very hit and miss (either great or annoying… nothing in between!). Jill’s books are such relaxing, happy reads 🙂
Rivers of London isn’t at all scary. A little tense in places, but not frightening. And the series is surprisingly funny and seems to be getting funnier 🙂